A row over a northern Italian
school allegedly scrapping its traditional Christmas concert to
stage a more 'secular' event in order not to alienate students
of other faiths continued on Monday despite the principal's
attempt to deflate it.
Marco Parma, the head of Rozzano's Garofani comprehensive
institute, at the weekend denied reports he had taken down
crucifixes and said he had not cancelled any planned events in
the run-up to Christmas.
He said a concert would take place at Rozzano's Garofani
secondary school on December 17 and that its primary school
would hold a concert on January 21, as decided at the start of
the academic year in September.
"The only request that I opposed was that of two mums who
wanted to teach hymns to the Christian children during the lunch
break, which I continue to consider inappropriate," said Parma,
who has offered to resign, but only with respect to the school's
primary section.
At the time the decision to hold a winter concert at the
primary school in January rather than a pre-Christmas event was
made, it did not attract the media's attention.
But with the festival season approaching, it has now.
Monsignor Nunzio Galantino, the secretary general of
Italian bishops conference CEI, blasted alleged attempts to
cancel or hide Christmas in an editorial published Monday in
Catholic monthly Vita Pastorale.
"If this is Christmas, I find the decisions of those who
would like to cancel or camouflage Christmas to respect other
traditions or religious confessions, making fools of themselves
in the process, to be specious and ideological," Galantino
wrote.
Interior Minister Angelino Alfano, meanwhile, said he
would have traditional nativity crib scenes set up in
prefectures across Italy this Christmas.
"To those who believe dialogue is assisted by cancelling
our identity today we reply by having the new police
headquarters in Jesolo blessed by the Patriarch of Venice,"
Alfano added.
"Our position is very clear," the minister continued.
"Meeting and dialogue work better and are more authentic if
there is a strong identity. If identity is cancelled there is no
dialogue, no meeting, only confusion," said Alfano, adding that
a nativity scene would also be installed at the interior
ministry this year.
Meanwhile Lombardy regional councillor for education
Valentina Aprea affirmed her commitment to "returning nativity
scenes and religious songs to schools".
The authorities "will check where this is not happening,
even in the absence of direct competence in the matter", the
representative of ex premier Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia
(FI) party added.
Also on Monday, a small crowd of Rozzano residents
gathered outside Garofani school to debate the controversy,
watched over by police agents.
Regional FI coordinator and former education minister
Maria Stella Gelmini and leader of the right-wing anti-Europe,
anti-migrant Northern League, Matteo Salvini, also paid visits
to the school.
"If anyone thinks that can help our children by rejecting
our traditions, they have lost their mind," Salvini said.
"I hope that the principal takes up another job".
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